This just in - Beauden Barrett is still the unofficial 'Bronco' king.
The new Blues first-five set the Super Rugby world abuzz on Monday, when he recorded a blistering time of 4m 12s in the standard fitness test, a shuttle run completed in sets of 20-60m distances that has superseded the traditional 'beep' format in recent years.
Fitness testing has been the first point of order for all of Super Rugby Aotearoa squads this week, as they get a gauge how their players have emerged from their eight-week, coronavirus-enforced enforced break.
News of Barrett's breakneck time saw attention quickly turn to Hamilton on Thursday, where All Blacks teammate Damian McKenzie thought to be the only player capable of giving him a run for his money.
But Chiefs assistant coach Tabai Matson confirms McKenzie couldn't crack Barrett's benchmark in the team's test.
"He was close to his personal best, so that's the big thing," says Matson, unwilling to reveal any further detail.
"Remember, we're not at sea level here in Hamilton, so they've got an advantage up in Auckland. That's all I'll say."
That said, no other Chiefs player came close to McKenzie's pace, with the remainder of results spread over a fairly even curve.
"[McKenzie] is jet-shoes quick when it comes to a Bronco," Matson adds. "I think we had a bit of a spread, as you can imagine.
"Our trainer is really happy where we're at as a group, but there were no world records broken."
Matson would've been pleased with simply the sight of Luke Jacobson in full flight.
Earlier in the season, the All Blacks flanker made a comeback from a lengthy injury absence but only lasted 10 minutes against the Brumbies, before going down with a hamstring issue.
The two-month hiatus has allowed the 23-year-old to rest and rehabilitate, and he's now in line for a starting berth in the side's Super Rugby Aotearoa opener against the Highlanders in Dunedin on June 13.
Signs are also encouraging for All Blacks prop Nepo Laulala, whose recovery timetable from a round-one knee injury could also put him in the selection frame for the competition restart.
The news was less enoucraging for Laulala's fellow All Blacks front-rower Angus Ta'avao, whose surgery for a quadriceps tear as lockdwon began will unlikely keep him out of action for the revised domestic tournament.
